Managing Arid Areas and Sand Dunes in Sri Lanka - Combating Desertification in Asia, Africa and the Middle East - page 318

Box 16.1 (continued)
• carry out integrated planning and physical development;

• prepare a development plan;

• implement programs of development consistent with integrated plan-

ning;

• formulate and implement an urban land use policy;

• develop environmental standards and prepare schemes for environmen-

tal improvement.

Upper Mahaweli Environment and Forestry Conservation Division
( EFCD ). Within the Mahaweli Authority of Sri Lanka, this Divi-
sion promotes the protection and scientific management of the Upper
Mahaweli catchment area, through watershed management methods. The
strategy adopted by EFCD is to provide Government institutions, non-
governmental organizations (NGOs), private sector agencies, groups and
individuals operational in the area with information, technical expertise
and initial material inputs so that they can successfully implement water-
shed conservation measures. The Division operates in three teams:

• Conservation - soil, water, forest conservation activities and techniques,

etc.

• Participation - human resources development - awareness, training,

mobilization.

• Information - collation of database, analysis and sharing of data -

mapping, land use planning, GIS, economics, hydrological monitoring.

Registrar General ' s Department . The supervision of notaries and verification
of stamp duty on deeds, the registration and custody of notarial deeds and
other documents affecting property and the preservation of records and
issue of copies from such records are responsibilities of this Department.
Law Commission . The Law Commission was established under Act No. 3
of 1969 for the promotion of the reform of the law. The functions of the
Commission include keeping under review both substantive and procedural
law, with a view to its systematic development and reform, including the
codification of the law, the elimination of anomalies, the repeal of obsolete
and unnecessary enactments, the reduction of the number of separate
enactments and generally the simplification and modernization of the law.
The Commission is empowered to receive and consider proposals for the
reform of the law.
Civil Society is also increasingly involved in land-related activities, through
NGOs, special interest and advocacy groups and community-based organi-
zations. At the local level these groupings are involved in a wide range of
activities supporting stakeholders in sustainable management of the land
resources on which they depend.